


In Some Other World

by Aishuu



Series: 31 Ways to Leave Your Lover [22]
Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: Angst, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, M/M, Short, The Livejournal exodus, UST, failure to recognize sexuality
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-23
Updated: 2014-10-23
Packaged: 2018-02-22 06:19:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2497688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aishuu/pseuds/Aishuu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hikaru and Akira's romance never gets off the ground because neither is brave enough to take that step.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Some Other World

**Author's Note:**

> Not my favorite scenario for these two, but written for a challenge.

In one world, Hikaru and Akira might fight against society to love each other openly. They refuse to accept conventions, declaring to their friends, families and fans that they are important to each other and that love can't be wrong. There's a huge scandal in the Go world about it, but in the end the fuss dies down and they settle into a quiet relationship, content in having each other.  
  
This is not that world. In this world, Hikaru never gets the courage to tell Akira that he thinks he feels something more than rivalry. Akira, so ingrained in the culture of Go, never even questions that the pounding his heart makes whenever Hikaru is around could be more than adrenaline.  
  
They're close, perhaps even best friends, but there's always a secret between them. They trust each other enough to pursue the hand of God together, and that's what they think is important.   
  
It's almost not worth noticing when Akira accepts his parents' desires for him to attend an _omiai_ , because although he agrees to marry the girl, it's Hikaru that he still spends most of his time with.   
  
When Hikaru marries Akari two years later, Akira stands as his best man. Akari is miffed when Hikaru insists on a short honeymoon, but she knows that she will never be first in his heart. She doesn't say anything, instead forming a close friendship with Akira's wife Hisae. When the men forget about them, their wives take comfort in their friendship.  
  
It's a strange relationship, and it's not until Hikaru's nearly forty and a father three times over that he realizes that he doesn't love Akari as more than a friend. This makes him question what love is, and the answer is one he refuses to acknowledge. He has a family, and he has his Go, and he'd be silly to want anything more.   
  
But when Akira's hands brush against his as they clean up after each game, he finds himself wondering what life would be like if he had actually dared to take a chance.


End file.
